Comfort
by Forever Free Evergreen
Summary: Series of oneshots focusing on everyone's favorite swordsman & navigator often in regards of their blue-nosed doctor R
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **_I do not own One Piece just the words below._

_What do you guys reckon: this more of a Zoro/Chopper friendship thing or a slight Zoro/Nami romance thing?_

_I'll let you decide…_

**#~#**

The Thousand Sunny truly was a magnificent ship. However, the ship was twice the size of the Going Merry with a lot more rooms and places for a directionally challenged swordsman to get lost in making Nami's search for the moss haired moron that more infuriating so that when she finally found him having a nap inside the bathroom of all places, she did not whether to just slug him like normal, drown him, or toss his lazy ass over the balcony into the ocean.

"Hm? Morning already?" Zoro muttered tiredly as he rubbed one eye seemingly oblivious to the swollen lump on his head, courtesy of the angry navigator in front of him, before nodding off again making Nami see red and bring her foot down- literally.

"**WAKE UP, YOU MORON!"** She snarled as she drove the heel of her sandal into his abdomen effectively waking the swordsman up and hurting him at the same time which was a definite bonus in her book in her current mood.

Grimacing in the pain the mikan haired witch just put him in, Zoro took a moment to get his breath back before standing his full height to glare down at Nami whose own glare was just as terrifying.

"Any reason why you're disturbing my nap?" He growled.

"In the _bathroom_?" Nami retorted as she looked around the room wanting nothing more than to have a nice relaxing bubble bath once this current problem was taken care of.

"It's supposed to have been the stockroom but I couldn't find it. The perverted shipwright screwed up when designing this ship" Zoro snorted as he looked away from Nami.

Nami just rolled her eyes at the idiot. Sure, he could take on a hundred bounty hunters or the right hand man of a Warlord of the Sea, but let him lead people to a certain location and you're more likely to find yourself a hundred miles in the opposite direction.

"Well, your pathetic sense of direction aside, I need you to do something for me" Nami told him earning another hard stare from the swordsman.

"Go get snail-brow to do your dirty work" He told her as he picked up his swords and made to leave the room.

"It's about Chopper"

Upon hearing what, or rather who, Nami needed help with, Zoro stopped in his tracks causing the navigator to smile briefly before dropping it as he turned around. It was no secret to the crew, minus Franky who had just come aboard, that the swordsman had a soft for the blue nosed doctor. While some of them did keep an eye out for Chopper as well, someone would have to be pure nuts to harm the reindeer under the Santoryu practitioner's watch.

"What's wrong?" Zoro asked a slight hint of concern in his voice.

"He's been down ever since he got his wanted poster" Nami explained sadly.

Nothing else needed to be said. When they all were given bounties, or updated in the case of Captain and first mate, a few of them were not really chuffed about certain parts of their poster be it their picture or in Chopper's case the amount of beri for his head- and the fact that he had been dubbed the Straw Hats _pet_.

While Nami would normally have gone and cheered up the lovable reindeer herself or asked maybe Robin or Usopp, she remembered that time back from Long-ring Island after Chopper had been taken by the Foxy Pirates and how he had done a complete one eighty after hearing Zoro's little speech about being a real man. As much as she hated to admit it, Zoro did seem to be the better person to ask.

Zoro seemed to have been thinking along the same lines, as when Nami looked at him again he was sporting that annoying smirk of his as he looked down at her- oh, how she wanted to wipe it off his face permanently. Sure, he was great for putting between herself and the enemies, but for anything else he was as useful as a chocolate boat- to all but Luffy for obvious reasons.

"Just get your butt moving before I move it for you!" She growled wondering if he were a masochist at times as he walked out with that obnoxious smirk still plastered on his face. "The other way, baka!"

**#~#**

After circumventing the lower levels of the ship and somehow ending up in the crows nest, the wandering swordsman finally found the little reindeer sulking in a corner of his infirmary with his wanted poster lying in front of him as if mocking him.

"Quit sulking, Chopper. We already have one emo on this ship without adding you to the group" Zoro told him recalling how snail brow had practically curled in on himself over his poster and whenever he saw that old hag.

"At least Sanji has a proper bounty on his head!" Chopper shouted at Zoro picking up the piece of parchment and waving it like some rag he just wanted to get rid of. "I fought alongside all of you, did my share of the fighting! How come I'm described as the pet of this crew and not as a member?!"

While looking stoic and uncaring on the outside as Chopper continued ranting until he used up all the energy in that tiny form of his, Zoro was slightly amused on the inside about all this. As far as the swordsman could tell, Chopper had been called monster and freak both by his herd then by people after he ate the Devil Fruit. To be now throwing a temper tantrum over being called a _pet_, it definitely counted as ironic no matter how it was diced.

Finally running out of steam, Chopper panted heavily as if suddenly experiencing a terrible heat wave. With the blue nosed reindeer now done with his rant, Zoro walked over and sat crossed legged in front of him.

"Feel better now?" Zoro asked him receiving a nod of the head from Chopper. "You shouldn't really be so upset about this, Chopper. This poster shows just how much they underestimate you"

"Under-_hic_-estimate?" Chopper asked trying hard not to cry in front of the man who told him not too long ago about how a real man should act.

"Yeah. You're kinda like Nami: she may look all cute and innocent on the outside, but get on her bad side and she is a witch you don't want to mess with" Zoro explained going from personal experience with the woman in question. "Just like her, you don't look at all more dangerous to the enemy until you go all…tough guy on them in your human form"

He had almost slipped up there and called the little guy a monster. Had he not been quick enough, Zoro was sure the cries from Chopper would have ignited the tempers of several of the crew- including the witch he just talked about.

"Besides, you're role in our crew is to heal injuries not make them. You let me and Luffy take care of the enemy, we need you to be there for us after the battle's over, _Doctor_"

"Z-Zoro…" Chopper sniffled eyes all watery as he stared up at the swordsman. "You…You…You _jerk_! Don't think for a second that you can make me feel better with those lies, you idiot!"

Zoro merely grinned back in reply to Chopper who was now back on his feet doing his little happy dance.

Seeing as his work here was now done, the Santoryu practitioner quietly left the infirmary, under the knowledge that the little doctor would soon be getting to…whatever it was that he did during the voyages from island to island whenever he was not with Luffy and Ussop. He had barely made it out onto the main deck of the Sunny when he bumped into Nami again who had apparently been waiting for him.

"I could hear him calling you a jerk from here. Who'd have ever thought that Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro was just a big softy when it came to kids" She joked smiling happily at the thought of Chopper being himself again.

"We're nakama, we're supposed to look out for each other" Zoro curtly replied as he leaned against the side of the ship staring out over the sea. "Just because we all have our own dreams and goals, doesn't mean that we don't care about each other. We wouldn't have lasted this long if we didn't"

"So…does that mean you care for me also?" Nami asked in a curious fashion as she stepped up to beside the swordsman. "This _witch_ as you like to call me?"

"Seeing as I'm always the one saving your ass…" Zoro began as he snaked an arm around the navigator's waist and pulled her against him. "What do you think"

Nami pretended to think about his question while quickly glancing round to see if there was anybody around to spot them being intimate.

"I think I'll wait until you can find your way around the ship before properly getting back to you on that" She replied softly pecking his lips before slipping out of his grasp. "Perhaps, if you hadn't gotten lost, we might have been able to meet up sooner"

"Well, maybe if Franky hadn't screwed up in designing this ship, you would've found me sooner" Zoro countered a slight blush marring his frowning features as he looked away.

"Why don't you go tell him that yourself?" She suggested as she walked off knowing full well that Zoro would not dare do so for fear of the cyborg spreading word about the crew about the two of them- there would be no peace from them, especially the cook.

"Tch! Always has to have the last word in things!" Zoro grumbled under his breath as he watched the mikan haired navigator walk away from him knowing full well that that extra sway of her hips was done on purpose.

**#~#**

_Be honest here, folks. This probably isn't my best of works no matter how you sugar coat it._

_Still, review if possible & until next time_

_Watch this space & peace out!_


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer on chapter 1_

_Not long after posting up the first chapter, I began to realise there could have easily been similar moments before and after my fic so I decided to try my hand at those I already thought up._

_This one here is set just after the Straw Hats met Bellamy & are now en route to meeting Ussop- I mean the descendant of the Liar._

_**#~#**_

It was not hard to find Nami even if the Going Merry was confusing to him at times. All Zoro had to do was follow the loud irate sound of Nami's voice as she fumed over being laughed at back at the port town and he found her pacing her quarters she shared with Robin who was wisely reading a book outside so as to avoid being targeted by the angry navigator who rounded on the swordsman the moment his boot set foot on forbidden territory.

"What the hell are you doing here?!" She snarled at him clearly in no mood to put up with his geographically challenged stupidity. "Get out of here now before I increase your debt to me five-no, _ten_fold!"

While normally that would have flared up Zoro's temper despite usually complying with the mikan haired witch, this time he bravely, or perhaps foolishly, stood his ground against her merely folding his arms as he looked at her with a serious expression he rarely used unless necessary.

"You're still going on about it, huh?" He asked despite it being obvious to him.

"Well, seeing as you or Luffy didn't do anything to shut them up, what do you expect!?" Nami snapped. "You guys let them walk over you! Aren't you two supposed to be the strongest of the crew?!"

Zoro sighed in frustration. It was probably because she was a woman and not a fighter that she did not understand things like these. True, he wanted to take out that laughing hyena and his bunch of pansies after the guy knocked away his Captain, but that was until said Captain ordered him to do nothing against them.

While not properly understanding the reason as to why, the swordsman did know that Luffy clearly saw those guys as people who were beneath them and their poor excuse for attacks clearly told him that they were not worth his time. Heck, he reckoned either of them could have shut them all up with just single punch- in that sense, they had luck on their side today when Luffy gave him that order.

Unfortunately, Nami did not seem to see things the way they did and had now worked herself into such a state that not even that former Baroque Works officer or needle brow dared try to speak to her to say nothing of their marksman or doctor who he was here on the behalf of.

"Look, like you said: what's in the past is in the past. No point getting yourself wound up about it- you weren't even hurt, for crying out loud" Zoro told her.

In truth, those guys were lucky enough to have not hurt her physically. Just one scratch or bruise given to her and Zoro would have gone against the Captain's orders and tear them all a new one- then again, Luffy would have probably tried to beat him to the punch-_literally_!

"Don't go using what I said against me, baka!" Nami snapped as she crossed the room to stand in front of the swordsman and clasp the collar of his shirt. "They laughed at me! You should have hacked them all up there and then to defend my honor!"

"Okay, I get why you're angry at me and Luffy" Zoro began still keeping his cool despite the situation he was in. "But that doesn't mean you can lash out at the rest of the crew. I've already had to fish Chopper out of the water twice because you lashed out at him"

If anything, his words seemed to frustrate Nami even more despite being true.

"So…you'll come to Chopper's aid whenever he needs help…but with me it's different, is that what you're saying?!" Nami demanded pulling one arm back intent on slugging Zoro hard enough the she might be lucky enough to pound even a little sense of direction into his moss covered skull.

Her attack never landed. Easily catching her fist with one hand, Zoro wrapped his free arm around the navigator's waist and pulled her against him easily pinning her there with one arm. Opening her mouth to protest against whatever it was that he was doing, Nami found herself becoming speechless as Zoro kissed her hard robbing her of the strength to protest and even her anger as she found herself slowly sinking into bliss judging by the way her once wide eyes slid closed.

Feeling her literally melt into his kiss, Zoro eventually pulled away from Nami who pouted at him despite having a dreamy look on her features.

"Are you going to quiet down now?" He asked although it was a rather moot question seeing as Nami was only standing due to him holding her up.

"And if I don't?" Nami challenged despite her anger already having dissipated the moment he kissed her.

Unable to hold it in, Zoro chuckled as he let go of the navigator only for Nami to loop her arms around his neck before he could get away quick enough.

"Well?" She asked pulling him down to have easier access to his lips.

Deciding to humor her this time around, Zoro allowed Nami to recapture his lips as he gently scooped her up so that he did not have to bend his neck so much. Moaning into the kiss, Nami quickly wrapped her legs around the swordsman's waist not caring if doing so forced her miniskirt to bunch up above her hips.

**~#~**

It was thirty minutes later before Zoro found himself walking into the store room situated at the fore of the Merry.

"You can come out now. She's calmed down" He called out to no one in particular.

"You're supposed to say 'potassium chloride'!" Chopper scolded as he poked his head out of the barrel he had been hiding in since Zoro had left to get Nami to calm down after the navigator had scared him into jumping overboard again.

"Sorry, I forgot" Zoro shrugged although in truth he never really heard the doctor say anything about passwords. "Never was good at remembering words smart folk like doctors know"

"D-Don't think praising me will cheer me up, baka!" Chopper yelled while doing his happy dance. "Those lies of yours have no effect on me"

"If you say so. Guess fooling you is impossible" Zoro replied unable to keep from smiling at the joyous mood the blue nosed reindeer was now in as he now began his happy-happy dance.

With his job done for the day, the swordsman figured he deserved a nice long nap and decided to go to one of his favourite napping spots until they reached the other side of Jaya. He had just gotten comfortable when the sounds of Chopper's footsteps could be heard approaching him.

"Hey, Zoro? How did you get Nami to calm down?" He asked of the swordsman curious as to how the man could have survived Nami's wrath and calm her down at the same time.

"I have my ways" Was all he got from the smirking swordsman.

**#~#**

_So, how was it? Good, bad, none of the above, etc?_

_Review if possible & until next time_

_Watch this space & peace out!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:**_ On chapter one (piece)  
_**Timeframe:**_ Post Skypia Arc_

**_#~#_**

It was the crew's first evening back on the open sea. Not even the dreamy thought of all that gold in the hold could tear the navigator's eyes from where the sun turned everything a hue of orange as it began to sink below the oceanic horizon. She was even contemplating asking if she could share Chopper's shift up in the crow's nest, a job she usually made someone else take in her place, just for the better vantage she would have of the view and for some pleasant company.

As she stood there contemplating on going through with the idea of spending some time up in the crow's nest or in the hold doing another count of every gold doubloon, shiny jewel and pearl, she almost failed to notice the sounds of hoofs walking passed and would have thought nothing of it had she not realised that the only person with hooves should be up top instead of down on the deck.

"Chopper, what are you doing down here?" She asked the blue nosed reindeer as she turned to face him. "Did you forget to go before relieving Zoro of his duty?"

At her words, the little reindeer looked down at his hooves so that the rim of his pink top hat covered his face.

"What's wrong, did you two have a fight?" She asked softly as she crouched down.

What she was asking was, by itself, unreal. Ever since the blue nosed reindeer had joined them, he seemed to have gained an admiration for Zoro similar to Usopp obviously due to seeing the swordsman's inhuman strength and sword skills that put him on par with their Captain and other Devil Fruit users.

Unlike with Usopp, Zoro seemed to show a softer side to Chopper which could be described as cute and very blackmail worthy material to Nami had she not the heart to let that little titbit slide. While Zoro would knock about the other male members of the crew were they to start something with him, particularly Sanji, Nami had witnessed for herself how the first mate had all but left himself wide open to Chopper's own attacks on his person. While knowing that Zoro probably never even felt a twinge of pain from the reindeer's assaults, so long as he was in his tiny form and not human, the fact that he allowed Chopper to attack him showed that the crew's hard as nails second in command was a big softy inside.

So to see Chopper like this after mentioning the moss head's name evidently meant that some sort of fight had happened. One that Nami was going to get to the bottom of then kick the bottom of said marimo and increase his debt- preferably in that order.

"Zoro told me I wasn't allowed to do any jobs that would cut into my recuperation time" Chopper mumbled still looking down at his hooves. "He said that I'm banned from doing any shifts in the crow's nest, any nightshift details or anything strenuous until my wounds are properly healed"

"He said _that_?!" Nami muttered in disbelief.

"How come he gets to order me to rest yet he keeps on training and…and…and fighting when I tell him not to?!" Chopper began to sob looking tearfully up at Nami. "He always gets hurt in battle yet he doesn't know how important it is to rest up but with me I have to do as I'm told and not do my duties if hurt!"

She could easily understand where Chopper was coming from. Having been one of the first crew members, Nami had seen more than her share of witnessing Zoro literally take a licking and keep on ticking even on Death's doorstep. She had even witnessed some of the times Chopper had all but yelled at Zoro for removing his bandages or resume his inhuman training regime which she had to admit was cute.

While she did sympathise with Chopper, Nami had a good feeling as of why Zoro was taking Chopper's shift and ordering him to take it easy. All she had to do now was confirm her suspicions and calm the waters between the two crewmates.

"Seeing as he's taking your shift, Chopper, why don't you get some sleep?" Nami suggested quickly holding a finger to the reindeer's lips to prevent him from interrupting her. "That way, you get to have first watch tomorrow while I go have a few words with Zoro over how he's treating you"

"Well…Okay" Chopper agreed after taking a moment to thinking on her proposal. "But, try not to aggravate any of his injuries, okay?"

"You don't have to worry about that" Nami assured him as she made her way to the rope ladder. "It's only his head I'm gonna pound!"

_S-Scary!_ Chopper mentally whimpered almost bringing out a Rumble Ball so as to use Guard Point in case Nami got angry at him…again.

**_#~#_**

Sitting against the mast of the ship, with his swords resting against the rail of the crow's nest, Zoro's lack of surprise when he first saw the navigator's manicured fingers clasp the wooden rail clearly showed that he had been expecting Nami to show up sooner or later. Not even when the rest of her appeared, glaring daggers at him, did he so much as bat an eyelid, or even glance at her for that matter.

"You know what this is about, don't you" She stated not even bothering to mask it as a question. "What I want to know is: are you just trying to be a hypocrite making him do what you don't or is this your way of punishing yourself for what happened up there?"

"It's none of your business, witch!" Zoro growled quietly as he looked away telling all that Nami needed to hear.

While up on Skypia, Chopper had had the rotten luck of coming across not just one of Emel's top fighters but two. Despite managing to take out the first one with some small degree of difficulty, the little reindeer was far out of his league against the next one who dealt quite a blow before being knocked out by the iron cloud trap that had been set up for any unwanted visitors.

From the way Zoro was now acting towards Chopper, Nami could easily deduce that the swordsman was the first to find Chopper after his defeat and quite possibly go into a fit of blind rage similar to his Captain- not that she could blame him- and was now finding some way to make sure Chopper rested up while simultaneously punishing himself for failing to protect a crewmate.

"Did you really have to do this, Zoro?" Nami asked as she sat down beside the swordsman. "All you're doing is upsetting Chopper, you know"

"So long as he gets to recover, I don't give a damn" Zoro grunted in response. "He needs time to let his wounds heal properly"

"That's kinda hard with the example you're setting!" Nami snapped.

"I'm setting?!" Zoro growled back in response turning to face the navigator.

"Yes, you! You're always going about acting like you're perfectly fine when you're the complete opposite!" Nami retorted. "Perhaps now you know what you put me and Chopper through every time something like that happens!"

"Why do you think I'm always shielding you guys from harm?! You think I enjoy taking the hits meant for you, Chopper and everyone else?!" Zoro threw back.

"No, but that doesn't mean you have to try protect all of us all the time! We all know the risk involved in this and are well aware of the fact that we might get injured or worse but doesn't mean we can't be allowed to fight our own battles!" Nami countered getting up from her seat next to Zoro and shoving him so that he was now against the rail of the nest with her on top of him. "Getting hurt's one thing, but watching someone you care about getting hurt or worse in your place is something I hate each and every time it happens!"

She knew it was pointless trying to tell him to not be so overprotective of her and the rest of the crew, even Sanji and Luffy, but Nami was at least hoping that he could learn to accept that there are and would be situations where someone else would be hurt regardless of what he did to try and protect them. While his selflessness was one his more endearing traits that drew Zoro to her, there was no way she could ever forgive herself if he lost his life due to that same selflessness.

"Just…try and get that through your thick head, alright?" She asked weakly as if her sudden speech had taken out all her strength. "We're not as weak as you think"

"That still doesn't take away the fact that I failed to be there for him" Zoro pointed out shifting a bit underneath her until he was more comfortable.

"Baka!" Nami sighed as she rested her forehead against Zoro's- with enough force that the back of his head connected painfully to the rail. "That was just a rotten twist of fate, as you would probably put it"

Despite briefly seeing stars from the witch's head-butt, Zoro did nothing to move Nami away or even off of him instead looping his arms around her waist so as to keep her there.

"Want me to apologise to him tomorrow?" He asked.

"First thing tomorrow" Nami corrected. "For now, you have to make it up to me for forcing me to miss out on watching the sunset"

"What are you talking about? The sun sets ever-mmph!" Not wanting to hear him talk any longer, Nami covered his lips with hers putting them to a far better use than to kill her ears.

**_#~#_**

"Zoro. Are you still up here?" Chopper called out as he made his way up the rope ladder to the crow's nest.

Having listened to Nami's instructions, Chopper had managed to get himself a good night's rest and was now hoping that the navigator had managed to persuade Zoro into letting him have a shift on watch. He was surprised when, upon poking his head above the rail of the crow's nest, he saw both the navigator and swordsman sleeping and huddled together within the same blanket that was often stashed up there in case it got cold during the night.

"Morning already?" Zoro grumbled opening one eye to look at Chopper while he pulled himself into the now slightly crowded nest.

"Um…yeah. Na…Nami said I could take this shift" Chopper explained turning small so that there was more room to move. "Um…That is…I mean…"

"How's your wounds?" Zoro inquired catching the reindeer off guard.

"Well, they're fine. A little itchy whenever I change forms but, they're not bothering me much" Chopper admitted.

"If they start to bother you more, let one of us know so that we can cover for you until you've got them treated and can work again" Zoro told him as he somehow managed to stand while taking the still slumbering form of Nami in his arms. "Just…don't try to take after me so much, okay? I can handle the pain better than you can, but even I have my limits to which I'll need you to be there for me"

Leaving the now very happy reindeer to keep an eye out for trouble, Zoro jumped down to the main deck with Nami still in his arms landing steadily on his feet despite the added weight.

"I should add another hundred berries to your debt, you know" Nami muttered opening her eyes. "Is it really that hard to say 'I'm sorry'?"

"You seemed satisfied with the 'apology' I gave you last night" Zoro pointed out as he dropped Nami gently on her feet.

"After finally convincing you to let me lead" Nami rebuked as she crossed her arms. "When are you going to get it through your head that going against me gets you nowhere?"

"When it starts to get boring" Zoro replied causing the navigator to blush slightly at his meaning.

"Smartass!" Nami quietly shouted resisting the urge to kick said anatomy in favour of watching it disappear into the store room as the owner went in search of his weights.

**_#~#_**

_Another imaginative (one) piece. If any readers can think of other moments within the series where these two can have a private tete-a-tete (I think that's how it's written in French) let me know so I have something to do between my other works if you please._

_Review if possible & until next time_

_Watch this space & peace out!_


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:**_ On chapter one (piece)  
_**Timeframe: **_After Drum Island & Chopper's now nakama_

**_#~#_**

"How cool!" Chopper squealed forcing Nami to pull herself up from her deck chair to see just what had captured the cute but naive new crewmate's attention this time.

Looking down from the upper deck, Nami was amused to see Chopper staring at Zoro who was currently doing one handed, two fingered, handstand push ups while Usopp stood beside the reindeer apparently explaining each and every one of the recent scars the swordsman had gained since becoming Luffy's First Mate.

"What about those on his ankles?" Chopper asked pointing to the two he had gained while on Little Garden.

"Hah! He did that to himself! You see, Zoro had gotten himself captured except only his legs had been shackled so he decided to just chop them off" Usopp told Chopper.

Chopper was stuck between being in awe or shock of what Zoro had attempted to do.

"He would have done so as well, had it not been for my daring and dramatic rescue at the last second and shot off the shackles and taken out his guards in the blink of an eye!" The sniper continued.

Nami rolled her eyes at the sniper's tall tale, recalling it quite differently and accurately, but decided against saying so seeing as Zoro was not looking at all bothered about it as he continued his training. Seeing as there was nothing out of the normal, which was a stretch when it came to her nakama, Nami made her way back to her deckchair to sunbathe perhaps even goading Sanji into rubbing suntan lotion on her back…for a fair price, of course.

"How about this big one? It looks like he was nearly cut in two!"

Barely had the doctor's words reached her ears Nami froze. There was only one scar on the swordsman's body that fit the bill for that description.

"That, he got by challenging the strongest swordsman known in all the seas!" Usopp told Chopper.

"And he won, right? Is that why Zoro's so strong, because he is now the strongest?" Chopper rapid fired at Usopp.

"Nope. He was beaten, barely alive when we started treating him" Usopp explained to the doctor. "And even with all my medical knowledge- that I learned by myself when I was just five and the only uninjured person in my village, by the way- Zoro needed rest and proper treatment for such a wound. Sadly, at the time, Nami had been taken captive by the fiercest of fishmen and we had to go save her"

"What did Zoro do?" Chopper asked practically on the edge of his imaginary seat as he hung onto every one of Usopp's words.

"He said to me 'Oi, I'm going to sleep now, Great Captain Usopp, wake me up when we get there'" Usopp said imitating the swordsman. "The moment we arrived, Zoro allowed himself to get caught then turned the fishman's deadly army into sashimi- which was all part of _my_ great rescue plan"

Nami had heard enough and quickly moved to the rear of the ship before anyone saw her. The memory of seeing Zoro helpless in Arlong's grasp still burned painfully in her mind and could not help but wonder if she herself was to blame for how he ended like that given what she had done while at the ocean restaurant.

Not only that, but she herself had actually kicked Zoro's wound assuming it to not be so serious. Upon seeing first hand what those bandages had hidden when Arlong ripped them off, she had felt too shocked at the sight to do anything to help him until Luffy showed up- and literally threw Zoro away from Arlong.

Still, she could not help but admire Zoro for still coming for her despite being at Death's doorstep for what had been the second time since she had joined the crew- not to mention feel slightly intimidated by his near immortality.

"Still blaming yourself?" A familiar voice inquired.

"You could have died in Arlong Park! Had you just forgot me when I betrayed you guys…" Nami began as she turned to face Zoro who had likely spotted her leaving and decided to follow and check up on her.

"What makes you think any of us can change Luffy's mind once he's decided on something?" Zoro asked before she could continue. "Even if you decided to ditch us, the Captain ordered me to get you back"

She had to concede defeat there even if she did not like it.

"Look, whether by fate or luck we're both still apart of this crew which is a good thing considering who the Captain is" Zoro told her pulling Nami in for a much needed hug. "So why don't you stop fretting over the past and start thinking about the present?"

"Yeah, fair enough" Nami agreed falling silent as the strong heartbeat of the swordsman calmed her frail nerves. "Besides, you can't die yet anyway until you pay back all the berri you owe me!"

If anyone else was around, Zoro would have immediately started an argument over his 'debt'. Since they were alone for the first time since before Whiskey Peaks…

"I've been meaning to ask you something about this: Say I believe you, what would happen if I were to not pay you back?" Zoro asked picking Nami up and sitting her on the rail of the ship with his arms securely around her.

Wrapping her arms tight around his neck, Nami leaned in close to the swordsman.

"Then it means that you'll be stuck with me for a very long time until either you pay up or I cancel it" She told him smugly.

"Hm…Guess I could live with that" Zoro grinned before closing the distance between them.

**_#~#_**

_Shorter than my usual, but still enjoyable to you readers…I hope. I might do an even earlier one post Arlong Park battle but probably save it for later- keep you on tenterhooks for a while._

_Review if possible & until next time_

_Watch this space & peace out!_


	5. SOPA Notice

I found this out from an author of a story!

In is an important notice that will affect everyone on this sight and many others.

I saw this notice in a fic by gamelover41592, as well as seeing/hearing about it on other sites, that SOPA is back. The bill that is threatening to take away our freedoms on the internet is back. Not only back, but it is trying to be passed quietly so nobody notices. SOPA will guarantee that anybody who streams a video, whether it be on youtube, a walkthrough for a video game, or a kid singing a song that is 'copyrighted' they will be treated as a felon. That's one of the highest forms of criminal offense; for something as simple as uploading a video game walkthrough on youtube, playing a song with lyrics of your favorite artist, and even one we all go on, this one right here.

It affects us here on Fanfiction as well. Think it's an exaggeration? Who knows? You're required to do nothing, least of all believe. Shut one's eyes tight, or open one's arms wide. Either way, one's a fool. But belief or not, some things must be accepted. Fanfiction will be attacked for using canon characters in a fanon manner, and who the hell knows what else. This affects all of us, and we can't let it happen.

Some of you will likely claim bullshit, which is understandable. But the author I saw this provided links below to show she was telling the truth. Simply remove the spaces below, and see for yourself.

www . huffingtonpost 2013/08/07/unauthorized-streaming-felony_n_3720479 . html

www . washingtonpost blogs/the-switch/wp/2013/08/05/sopa-died-in-2012-b ut-obama-administration-wants-to-revive-part-of-it /

www . techdirt articles/20130805/12472124074/administration-cant- let-go-wants-to-bring-back-felony-streaming-provis ions-sopa . shtml

www . youtube watch?v=1fTt4K4Cae4

SOPA has been stopped before and damn if we can't do it again. Everything we love that gives lifeblood and character to these fandoms, from fanfics to fanart to video tributes, are being threatened. Everything from here to youtube is in danger of being FUBAR.

America once had the freedom to express themselves, but after the attacks on 9/11/2001, those freedoms began to dwindle in the name of "security." If we lose our collective voice, then who's to say that the US of A won't become like the England in V for Vendetta? We're not making money off of this, we're doing it because we enjoy it, and wish to share our passion with anyone who wants to see it. (And if there's some Government official spying on me or something, oh well. I'm stating my own opinion and it's not bringing any clear or present dangers to anyone's life, liberty, or their pursuit of happiness.)

It feels like one of those "copy and paste this if you're not afraid" statuses from Facebook, combined with an unofficial petition, but copy, paste, and add your name to the growing list if you're against SOPA.

shadowwriter329

Madam Jokudaime Kanaya Maryam

g1rldraco7

Yurei Hanatsuki

Forever Free Evergreen


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